Preparing for a Busy Monday after Thanksgiving

Nope, wrong again. I’m talking about something that is much, much more important than both of those days - Cyber Monday!

Okay, just kidding, Thanksgiving is obviously much more important than any shopping day, but Cyber Monday, the term coined in 2005 for the Monday after Thanksgiving when we’re all at work, supposedly doing something productive, is now one of the biggest online shopping days of the holiday season. The National Retail Federation recently conducted a survey and found that 80% of holiday shoppers planned to shop online on Cyber Monday. As an online retailer, it’s absolutely essential to cater to this huge audience of potential customers. They expect deals, and it’s up to you to provide them with some good ones so you’re not left behind with the Thanksgiving leftovers.

Since we’re less than a week away from the big day, here are a few quick tips we’ve learned from our research in regards to ecommerce and Cyber Monday:

Make sure you sell gift cards on your website! According to our friends at the NRF, gift cards have been the #1 most requested holiday gift item for 9 years running. Highlight them on your site. Who doesn’t like a gift card?

Offer complimentary gift wrapping. As an admitted terrible gift-wrapper, I would definitely choose one site over another if this was an option. It’s one less thing you have to worry about during this busy time.

Send a broadcast email to all of your customers detailing the great deals they’ll get by going to your site on Cyber Monday and making a purchase. If you don’t remind them, they may forget about your site. Keep in touch with them and tell them how special they are!

Share your deals via social media. Finally, a reason to use your social media feeds! We all know that some people out there live on their Facebook page or Twitter feed. Make sure you’re announcing all of your deals and plans to them on your social feeds.

Offer free shipping or same day shipping. Or, better yet, offer both if possible. We want our stuff and we want it now! For free!

Make sure you have enough inventory and if you don’t, offer a rain-check for sold-out items. Few things are more annoying than not being able to buy something that you showcase on your site, make sure you don’t lose that customer for good!

Good luck and may Cyber Monday bring you a bunch of traffic and customers and profits! If it doesn’t, please contact us and we’ll make sure it does in the future.

Shawn has been with Americaneagle.com since 1999 in a variety of roles. Currently, Shawn heads up our content marketing team and is a true believer in the content marketing revolution. In addition to editing and producing written company pieces, Shawn also helps to produce our radio spots. He wants to make sure everybody knows that it’s truly a collaborative effort – between many, including the people he’s worked for during the past 15 years!